Gangster City Slots
There is nothing quite so heady as a concoction of alcohol aged by a fine array of food, beautiful ladies, copious amounts of cold hard cash, and a smidgen of danger around every corner. These are the elements that made the 1920s such a powerful and memorable era, particular in the US where the mobster scene was a roaring underworld industry.
Capturing the spirit of the period so perfectly is Gangster City from Play Pearls, a reputable albeit smaller gaming company within the sector. They have created a 5-reel, 15-payline slot machine that surprised us the moment it loaded.
Filled with a diverse variety of icons that will forever keep you guessing and moving towards that final total, this slot machine may have a retro gaming vibe but it’s anything but. Oozing finesse throughout, it’s the bonus round that steals the show and makes us praise the brand out loud for its innovation.
The Inner Workings of the Underworld
This is the bit you’ll probably want to skip if you’re sick of hearing about how to play slot machines, but for those of you that are new to this, you’ll want to keep your eyes glued to this section in particular. Nevermind the graphics, this is your means of getting past the starting point.
Ignoring the fact that there is a demo mode available in our free slot games section, you will need to place a bet to get started, with the beginning amount being 0.10, a relatively small pay-in. If this is played across all 15 of the paylines then gamers will start with a final stake of 1.20. Should you wish to increase your gamble to make the game a bit more interesting, you can use the plus widget to crank it all the way up to 2.00 credits, giving you a final amount of 30.00.
Adjusting the paylines is easy and a lot more fun than we’re used to - presented in stylings mimicking the barrel of a gun, there are multicoloured numbers for you to click on. If you only want to play with 5 lines, simply click that number and the title will adjust. Equally, if you want to return to the full amount of paylines, locate the number 15 and you can get started; if you’re ever in doubt, re-click the number for good measure.
Once that’s all done you can finally select that shiny spin button. Unfortunately there are no auto options on offer here, meaning that the gameplay may start to feel sluggish for those who are used to speeding things up. However, try to not let it put too much of dampener on your game for Play Pearls has put a lot of effort in here.
Show Me the Money!
A gangster slot machine wouldn’t be very gangster like without a robbery or two, which is why the bonus game is so much fun – you actually get to pull off your very own heist! To do this, gamers will need to get three of the safe symbols, which sounds easy but when you figure out that they don't seem to appear very often, it becomes more difficult.
In the mini level you will be presented with a room, which will highlight areas for you to search in order to find safe keys, meaning you can give the TNT a rest when on your search for money. After that you will be shown several safes which you need to get into somehow, be warned that although you may have found some keys, they’re not guaranteed to work. Thankfully you can resort to using bombs to get the job done, just tap on the dynamite and then select the safe you’re looking to blow.
There is a newspaper scatter at work in the game also, which becomes your wild symbol and removes some but not all other icons in an attempt to form a winning line. Then there are sticks of explosives to collect ready for when you come to the bonus round, but after that the symbols are just basic match and get money formats.
A Gangster’s Paradise?
We’ve got to admit that we really enjoyed this game, even though we were somewhat doubtful to begin with; the monetary gains aren’t that great, but the gameplay is exceptional and that bonus round. Wow, it’s something else. It almost feels like you’re getting two games for the price of one when you trigger it.
